Titans Hang Tough vs. International Competition

FULLERTON, Calif.—Some of the young Titans gained valuable experience over the weekend, as they played three games over a two-day span Saturday and Sunday at Titan Stadium, dropping two close games to Japan's Ryutsu Keizai and one to San Diego State.

Fullerton took the field for one of the first times without its seven seniors from last fall's postseason bound Titan squad, as it hosted Japan's Ryutsu Keizai Saturday morning.

The weekend didn't start well for Fullerton, as it fell to a very determined and technically sound Ryutsu Keizai club by the final of 5-1.

"The first game was a great opportunity to play against someone that put us under a lot of pressure," said Fullerton head coach Bob Ammann. "Their technical ability and precision in the final third was impressive."

The Titans geared up to play another 90 minutes of soccer immediately following their morning match, and despite showing obvious fatigue from the previous game, put together a very encouraging performance vs. San Diego State.

Once again, Fullerton chose not to use its seniors from last season, while the Aztecs did. The match was scoreless and closely contested for the majority of the game, but SDSU eventually broke through with two goals late, while the Titans failed to capitalize on numerous scoring opportunities.

Afterwards, the Titans still had one more game to play on the weekend, and while it's still just spring soccer, Fullerton showed some grit and determination Sunday evening, as it took on Ryutsu Keizai for the second time in two days.

Mark Vasquez and Ian Ramos each recorded goals, while Fermin Villalba nearly put one in himself, as he bounced the ball just off the crossbar. Nevertheless, the Titans held a comfortable 2-0 at halftime.

Ryutsu Keizai struck back, as it fired in a goal at the 60-minute mark to cut the Fullerton advantage to 2-1.

However, it wasn't long before the Titans responded themselves, as Ramos recorded his second goal of the game later in the second half to make it a 3-1 Fullerton advantage.

Later, the Titans responded one more time, as Colin Okirie fired in a goal of his own to give Fullerton a 4-2 lead after Ryutsu Keizai converted a penalty kick.

Unfortunately for the Titans, they were outscored 3-0 in the final 10 minutes of play, as Fullerton ended up falling to Ryutsu Keizai 5-4 Sunday night.

"The first 45 minutes was some of the best soccer we've played in some time," said coach Ammann. "Although the team was unhappy with the ending of the game, I walked away very optimistic after the performance."

"I saw positive outcomes to things we've been working on and the things we had difficulty with are easy fixes."

Cal State Fullerton will continue it's spring season Tuesday, March 12 vs. the Los Angeles Blues at Titan Stadium.